Cortland line loops

[FLYinCT]

hi everyone, im new to fly fishing and saw something on the shelf at my local shop. it was a nylon braided loop that goes on to the end of your fly line and is heat shrinked on, i was thinking about getting it but thought id see if anyone had tried it and get some feedback on these things, thanks for any help.
Erik

[Capt Bob]

The braided loops are ok, but not the best method for securing the leader butt to fly line. I prefer to splice stiff butt mono directly into the the fly line core. This provides a seamless conection that hardly ever picks up weeds or fouls with flies.
Cut back the outer coatingof the fly line approx. 1/2 inch exposing the hollow core. Thread the butt into the hollow core. Trim the coating. Secure with a water insouble super glue. After it drys use an emery board to smooth out the coating. Tye a perfection loop in the other end of the butt allowing for a loop to loop connection. I use a 4-6 inch butt.
Nail knots aslo are good conections, but are susceptible to weeds.

[trouter203]

A few years ago, I bought the Cortland 555 line which came with the braided loop. One day while fishing, I went from snagged on the bottom to snagged high above in a tree in one fell swoop. I was snagged pretty far up the leader and I ended up loosing the braided loop and all. That ended my fishing for the day. I get by just fine with a nail knot and haven't had one fail yet.
As for the Cortland 555 line.....it didn't cast well and I ended up replacing it with Sci Anglers Mastery Trout which was a huge improvement.

[Ray]

I actually liked the Cortland 555 lines. However I must agree the Scientific Anglers mastery series lines are a definite improvement.

[TonyM]

I now automatically cut off any of those heat shrink connectors, I've had 3 fail me in the last year. The last one was on the cape this weekend on my lead core sink tip add-on. I replace them with either a nail or blood knot.

Tony M

[FK]

I have also obeserved too many braided loops with heat shrink fail.

Regards,
FK

[Housy Dave]

I think the braided loops are ok, and never really had problems with casting or tangling. They do make it easy to change leaders, which may be important to you. The disadvantage is that over time it is no where near as reliable as a nail knot or a blood not. I make a point to replace mine every 6 months or so cause they do start to wear. Just keep checking it, that's all. You shouldn't wait till it finally breaks on a fish, and then decide to replace it. If the braided loop is in good condition, and is attached correctly, they are very strong and will easily develop the strength of your leader/tippet. They work kind of like those old fashioned chinese finger traps. Even without the heat shrink, it is almost impossible to pull the line out once it's in there. The harder you pull, the tighter it gets.

I often hear about people breaking them as well. Sometimes it is only because the person never bothered to replace it when it was worn. Saltwater fish can sometimes pull hard enough to break a loop. If you're strictly freshwater, then I think you'll be ok with it.

[Redwings1]

For each of my fly lines I attach a short section of heavy line (ie 25 lb mono on my 5 weight) using an Albright Knot. The Albright is an easy knot to learn and your fly line will likely break before that knot come undone. I tie a small loop in the mono so I can do loop to loop connections with tied or tapered leaders.

[twistedtippet]

The best method I've found, is to attach a permenent butt section to the line using zap-a-gap. Simply heat a needle and push it about 3/4" into the center of the fly line. Roughen up the tip of the permenent butt section with sandpaper, coat with zap-a-gap, and insert into the fly line. I was a little worried when I first started using this system, but it hasn't failed failed me yet. I've been using this method for quite a few years, fish at least 4 to 5 times a week. To change leaders simply barrel knot a new one to the permenent butt, or better yet rebuild your existing leader.